The present invention relates to closure panel assemblies with a hinge concealed within the exterior of a vehicle body without obstructing interior space or the body opening providing access to the interior of the body.
Vehicle closures such as doors, hoods and trunk lids are often mounted by hinges that are hidden in order to avoid interference with vehicle body styling. However, the function and the structure of the hinge are often complicated by the fact that styling shapes of the closure panels, as well as the body panels adjacent the body opening closed by the panel, may be configured in a manner that does not match the direction of panel displacement, resulting in an interference unless a particularly complicated hinge mechanism can be employed to avoid the interference. Nevertheless, the need for special construction of each hinge structure depending upon the styling of the vehicle body reduces the efficiency of motor vehicle production.
Two types of hinges that have been used most prominently include gooseneck hinges and multiple bar hinges. The gooseneck hinges are often preferred since they provide simplicity and are not visible when the trunk is closed. Nevertheless, a gooseneck portion is mounted at each side of the lid and extends a substantial distance into the interior of the vehicle body. Thus, the pair of gooseneck hinge bars obstruct a large amount of room within the interior of the vehicle. Nevertheless, the pair of bars is necessary in order to properly align portions of the closure panel with the body opening and avoid interference with the rear window or other body area of the vehicle when the closure panel is open.
Alternatively, the four bar hinge system has been used for vehicle hoods and trunk lids. Multiple bar hinges are also invisible when the trunk is closed, and may be smaller and low in weight as they may be enclosed within a channel peripheral to the opening in the body and covered by the closure panel. However, the lever mechanism is substantially more complex. As a result, both of these systems are costly to produce, especially since many of the car models require changes in the width, length, and interactive arrangement of the parts to fit various vehicle closure panels and their related body openings. Moreover, the four bar systems may reduce the width of the access opening to the interior of the body in much the same way that the gooseneck bars restrict the trunk chamber, although the restriction is limited when the four bar system can be configured and mounted in the channel.
As a result, there is little interchangeability between the hinge components used on one model of vehicle compared to another model since the gooseneck bars or the complex linkages are particularly designed for displacing closure panels in a limited manner with respect to a particular body styling. Each different car model requires a unique hinge structure employed only with that particular model, and a plurality of hinge structures must be provided by vehicle manufacturers or suppliers.
In addition, the gooseneck hinges, and to a lesser extent, the four bar and six bar hinges, allow the closure panel at hinge side to be pushed off the trunk seal by an obstructive load within the compartment defined by the vehicle body. For example, a stuffed trunk of the motor vehicle may allow the deck lid tips at the adjoining edge of the body opening to lift above the adjacent body panel. When the closure panel is forced upwardly from the seal, ambient weather conditions can enter the compartment and damage the load. This unsealing is due to the cantilever nature of the gooseneck hinge and movement of links about the parallel axes in the conventional multi-bar hinge.
In addition, the previously known cantilever and complex linkage mountings often introduce substantial tolerances that can adversely affect lateral stability and sideways tracking of the closure panel with respect to the body opening, particularly where the closure panel is displaced to an open position away from the body opening. A previous patent application for a three axis hinge that was compact and mounted in a peripheral channel extending about a vehicle opening, but that has not been commercialized, also taught that instability in the closed position could be resisted by maintaining a particular alignment between the axes when the lid was in a closed position.
The present invention overcomes the above-mentioned disadvantages by providing a concealed hinge structure that does not interfere with vehicle compartments and does not cause interference with other vehicle body panels during displacement to or from either a closed position or an open position. The hinge structure is substantially simpler and occupies less space than many previously known hinge structures and improves the lateral stability of the closure panel by using at least one hinge set, but preferably a pair of hinge sets, each hinge set including three pivot axes, and a lid displacement limiter. The pivot axes of each set are aligned to intersect each set at a single point, and preferably positioned to control displacement of the panel in a non-interfering path with respect to adjacent portions of the body. In addition, the hinge set folds to a compact shape and can be mounted within a body channel, at the periphery of a portion of the body opening, to reduce obstruction of the useful space. Moreover, the hinge set structure is aligned for maintaining a precise position when the panel is closed, as well as when the panel is open and the lid displacement limiter restricts the alignment of the hinge set axes. As a result, the structure positively engages the closure panel against the closure seal around the body opening in the closed position, even when the load exerts pressure against the closure panel, and avoids excessive opening of the hinge that could render the lid position unstable.
Each hinge set generally comprises a panel mount defining a first pivot axis, a body mount defining a second pivot axis, and a first link and a second link pivotally secured to each other about a third axis. One of the first and second links is pivotally secured to the panel mount about the first axis, and the other of the first and second links is pivotally secured to the body mount about the second axis. Each of the first, second and third axes are aligned to intersect at a common subpoint, and the subpoint is positioned to locate the hinge axis to align said panel for movement on a non-interfering path with respect to body portions adjacent the path throughout a limited range of movement. A virtual pivot axis is possible at a location that a physical pivot might not be otherwise supported. Preferably, the common point is external to the body opening, and preferably outside, for example, forward of the trunk lid, of the opening. Closure of the hinge against a seal and restriction of lateral movement of the panel during displacement are improved when a first plane defined by the first and third axis and a second plane defined by the second and third axes remain at an acute angle when the panel is in a closed position.
Stability is improved in a fully open position of the closure and within a limited range of movement by maintaining an acute angle between the first and second planes with a displacement limiter. The planes may be easily identified when plates are used to form the links and to support journals for the hinge axes at the ends of the links. In such an embodiment, the displacement limiter may be conveniently provided by upstop edges on adjacent hinge plates that abut when the planes are aligned at an acute angle desired.
Nevertheless, rods may also be configured to include ends that are aligned along at least one of the hinge axes. When one rod includes two ends aligned with axes for pivotal displacement of each end with respect to adjacent components of the hinge, the construction of the hinge is substantially simplified. In such a case, or whenever the hinge components may not be readily modified to support displacement limiter components, displacement may be limited by other structures restricting displacement beyond the limited range by engagement with the closure panel itself. For example, a gooseneck arm secured to the panel may be biased toward an open panel position and against an abutment surface by a spring, for example, a torsion rod. In either event, the replacement of links with links of different sizes and axes alignments can adapt the assembly for use with a wide variety of vehicle body styles without changing the interaction of the hinge components and the displacement limiter. Moreover, these simple exchanges can modify the assembly to adapt the displacement of the closure panel with respect to many style features or accessory options for the vehicle body.
As a result, the present invention provides stability to a closure panel assembly with a compact hinge structure that provides interchangeability and commonality of hinge parts between different body styles of vehicles. In addition, the hinge structure folds compactly and operates in a restricted displacement zone from a mounting within a limited body area that limits obstruction to access and the interior space of the vehicle body covered by the closure panel. The assembly also resists the force of a compressed load tending to raise the closure panel away from the body seal and reduces instability of the closure panel in the open position. In addition, simple hinge components can be used with a variety of links in order to accommodate a wide range of vehicle styles. Moreover, the present invention provides a vehicle closure assembly with greater lateral stability in both open and closed positions and provides alignments between the components that improve the stability throughout the restricted displacement zone.